Race Summary
A small but enthusiastic group of six slot-heads showed up to race Early Modified and Slammers on 3/25/24.
- In the Early Modified class it was Rich, Ron and Mark for first through third respectively.
- In Slammers it was Rich, Bob an Ron for first through third respectively.
We have been racing our Early Modified class of cars since April of 2021. The class was inspired by short, dirt track racing popular in the 60s. I have fond memories of “Stock Car Racing” at the Danbury, Connecticut fairgrounds featuring fenderless 30s and 40s rides with flathead power.
The chassis for this class is the simple and popular “Econo” type which has very tight specifications. As a consequence, Econo racing of any kind is very competitive with several drivers in the hunt for podium finishes. In addition, overtaking is a challenge with open-wheeled rides; wheels touch and cars tumble.
Early Modified Current Race
Rich took the early lead in the first heat with 23.1 laps and led wire to wire finishing with 91.4 laps. The battle for the remaining spots on the podium was fierce with three competitors finishing with the same lap and section totals. Ron was first in the barn of the three, finishing with 85.4 laps. Going into the final heat Mark and Bob, nearly tied, both had a real chance of overtaking Ron. In one of the closest finishes ever, it was Ron, Mark and Bob separated by inches for second through fourth respectively.
Slammers are a fairly new addition to the rotation at Electron Raceway. These cars resemble Late Model Extreme Modifieds. Slammer bodies begin their lives as 1/25 scale NASCAR kits representing cars from 1980-2007. These are then raked and shortened. Front wheels are exposed and a front push bar added as an option. The chassis/motor combination used in the Slammer class is the very same production H-Bracket common to so many other True Scale classes including Sports Car, Trans-Am, NASCAR etc.
The class’s inaugural race was held at Electron Raceway on 4/17/23 with second and third contests on 6/19/23 and 1/22/24 respectively. All three races yielded some fierce competition with cars very closely matched (all but one competitor turned a fast lap in the 4.9 second/lap range).
Slammers Current Race
Grid positions for the Slammer race were based upon the finishing order of the Early Modified race with Rich starting on the red lane, Ron on the yellow lane and Mark on the black lane. Results of the initial heat were close with Rich turning 23.1 laps; Ron less than a half lap behind, and Mark about a half lap behind Ron. Heats 2-4 were without drama and Rich finished his rotation with 94.3 laps; a new record (his fast lap time of 4.872 seconds was also a new record). That being said, the contest was far from over with Bob, historically Rich’s closest competitor, not yet turning a wheel on the track. Bob entered the race in heat #5 and posted 23.1 laps, matching Rich’s first heat total. However, in his second heat, Bob went a lap down on Rich and was unable to fully recover. Although able to close some of the gap, Bob finished second with 93.8 (about a half lap behind Rich).
Meanwhile, Ron and Mark were fighting for the bottom step of the podium. Ron entered the final heat on the red lane with more than a two lap advantage over Mark. The red lane, however, has always been Ron’s least favorite so the battle was not over. In the end, Mark was able to make up a full lap but it was not enough to overtake Ron. So it was Ron for third place and Mark for fourth place.
Editor’s Note: Bob and Ron turned personal best performances in the contest.
